Teens give back while learning about leadership

There’s nothing like hands-on experience to give our teens a lesson in leadership and meaningful philanthropy.

In September, the Jewish Alliance of Greater Rhode Island launched a program to do just that. The Teen Leadership and Philanthropy program was designed to offer teens in grades 8-12 an experiential learning program that incorporates intensive leadership symposiums, group volunteer experiences, social programming and philanthropy skills in a fun, eight-month adventure.

Participants engage in monthly meetings where they learn about philanthropy. They also are actively planning a local fundraiser to help raise money for a nonprofit of their choosing. Each teen has chosen a different nonprofit that she is interested in  and passionate about. The goal is to raise at least $300 for the chosen organization. These activities have involved commitment on each busy teen’s part as many meetings are held on Sunday.

Kiley B. is raising money for Higher Ground International. Higher Ground International is a forward-thinking and culturally grounded intergenerational social service nongovernmental organization (NGO) that advocates for and provides programs to West African Immigrants, refugees and marginalized communities in Rhode Island and rural villages in Liberia, West Africa. Kiley volunteered with this organization for her Bat Mitzvah project. As an extension of her project, she wanted to raise money for the NGO. Kiley will be holding a bake sale at her school where she will be selling homemade meringues and cookies.  

Milly A. was inspired by a “Grey’s Anatomy” episode where the doctors were helping children overseas. She wondered how she could do the same from Rhode Island. In researching different organizations, she came across Save A Child’s Heart in Tel-Aviv, Israel. Save a Child’s Heart (SACH) is an Israeli-based international nonprofit organization with special consultative status granted by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (ECOSOC). SACH was founded in 1995 at the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel, with the mission of improving the quality of pediatric cardiac care for children in developing countries and creating centers of competence in these countries. SACH’s goal is to improve the health and welfare of all children, regardless of the child’s nationality, religion, color, gender or financial situation To date, Save a Child’s Heart has saved the lives of more than 4,400 children from 55 countries in Africa, South America, Europe, Asia and throughout the Middle East, and trained more than 100 medical team members from these countries. In order to raise $300, Milly is organizing a basketball free-throw-a-thon. She has asked her friends from school to shoot free throws for 30 minutes. Friends and family can sponsor at $1/per basket. Sponsors can choose which teen to cheer for.

Violet W. noticed animals on the street and began to think about how they were being treated. Because she hated to think about how many animals don’t live in loving homes and aren’t being treated kindly, she decided she wanted to raise money for the ASPCA by  making scarves for dogs and cats. She will also be selling her paintings. 

All the teens involved are energetic and passionate about the organizations they chose. They are eager for the fundraiser on Sunday, March 18, when they will try to raise as much money as they can. The program will conclude on Sunday, April 15 with a celebration where we will congratulate everyone involved and we will announce how much money was raised.

SETH FINKLE is director of teen programming and Camp Haverim at the Jewish Alliance. If you would like to donate any amount to help the teens reach their goal, please contact him at sfinkle@jewishallianceri.org.